Alvaro Fernandez Carreras: the Spanish TGV on the left side by Harold Monteiro Macedo
Name: Alvaro Fernandez Carreras
Country: Spain
Date of birth: 23/03/2003 (18 years old)
Place of birth: Ferrol (Spain)
Height: 186cm
Youth career: Racing Ferrol, Deportivo La Coruna, Real Madrid, Manchester United (since 2020)
Current club: Manchester United
Current national team: Spain U-19
Position: left-back
The 19-year-old left-back is now one of the biggest talents in Manchester United’s youth academy and could follow Anthony Elanga’s footsteps in the near future. He is a physical player, quick with good technique on the ball. He is also very good at dribbling and passing.
He started playing football at Racing Ferrol, his hometown team, as a striker. He once said that he scored more than 100 goals in one season.
Then he signed for Deportivo La Coruna Academy and his new coach Juan Villamizar decided to play him as a left back.
Alvaro on his position change : “What I found most difficult at the beginning was tracking back, but I’ve assimilated it. In fact, I have a very good relationship with Juan and I always tell him what would have become of me if he hadn’t changed my position”.
In 2017, he was offered to join Real Madrid: “It was a difficult decision. A nice step, but a tough one. I had to leave my home to go 600 kilometers away to pursue my dream of being a footballer”.
After three interesting seasons in La Fabrica, the Ferrol native left Spain to join the Manchester United Academy. “Another difficult decision to make, but I think it was the right one. My characteristics have been a perfect fit. I wanted to come to England to improve my defensive game and become a better player overall. And it’s impossible not to progress by marking Cristiano, Mata, Sancho, Rashford…”.
He scored on his debut for United U18s in a 5-1 win against Burnley – a very good way to introduce himself. After a second good game with the U18s he was called up to the U23s. The 17-years-old left back was getting better and better with each game and ended the season with 1 goal and 5 assists in 20 games with the U23s and 2 goals and an assists with the U18s.
He started the 2021/22 season like he ended the previous: on top. It earned him a call-up to Spain’s U19 squad in October 2021 : “It was my debut. It’s a privilege to represent my country. I’ll keep working for more to come.”
He has 4 goals and 6 assists in 25 games this season so far and trains regularly with the seniors. Even if he has Luke Shaw and Alex Telles ahead of him, his time will come rather sooner than later because he is simply too good for youth football at this point.
Welcome to Benfica!!